Pantone’s color of the year
It’s the third Thursday of the month! The women of Ageless Style are back with Pantone’s color of the year, Very Peri. In case you’re unfamiliar with this group, each month, one of us picks a theme. We then create outfits with that theme in mind. Daenel from Living Outside the Stacks selected Very Peri for this month! In December, Carrie at A Simple Lovely Life suggested holiday looks. Prior to that, Bo, of Bo’s Bodacious Blog, picked booties. This gave me the chance to show off my favorite L’Artiste boots. It is so much fun to go shopping in my closet to showcase each month’s theme.
A little history…
In the spring of 2018, Nigel and I took a train trip to the Pacific Northwest. We fell in love with train travel and took a couple more trips. If you’re ever interested in traveling on a leisurely schedule with the bonus of meeting all kinds of people, then train travel may be just the ticket (pun intended)! We spent a couple of glorious days in Seattle before embarking on another train to Los Angeles. While sitting in King Street Station, we happened to strike up a conversation with an older gentleman. He was going to San Francisco to visit with his son. His wife was in Milan.
No one important…
Herb proudly bragged about his wife, Leatrice Eiseman. He said she was involved a bit with playing with colors. He had also decided not to accompany her to Milan this time. Me being me, I googled his wife once we were back on the train. I doubt this is the article I originally found, but I did discover Mrs. Eiseman did a little bit more than play with colors! In fact, Leatrice Eiseman is pretty well known for color! I do remember reading this article about their lovely home outside of Seattle. Mrs. Eiseman is still the executive director of the Pantone Color Institute and involved in developing the color of the year (here). And, I had forgotten all of this until I was writing this blog post!
Nigel and I were entranced with listening to Herb. We had quite the wait for the train, but Herb (as he asked us to call him) filled the time with tales from his life. He started out as a mail boy at a talent agency and worked his way up. He mentioned (and I mean just barely mentioned) he was the head of a music company for a while. Herb was the president of the recording and music publishing division at 20th Century Fox studios! His obituary (Herb passed in 2019) reveals he was also a founding member of the Motion Picture Arts and Science Museum! Herb told us about an adventure he had in the early days of his career. He was instructed to pick up a young starlet and take her to the dentist. The young starlet? Grace Kelly! Except for Grace Kelly, Herb did no name dropping at all! He was just the nicest, understated man. See why I love riding trains! You never know who you’re going to meet!
Pantone’s Very Peri
According to this article , blue “seeks peace and tranquility above everything else”. The color, periwinkle, is sometimes referred to as lavender blue but tends more toward blue than violet. I remember painting our bedroom in our last home a shade of periwinkle. I was always drawn into that room. Now, I understand why I felt such peace and contentment in there. The color soothes my soul. In my research, I also discovered periwinkle is one of those colors most people can wear. I know some would say we can wear all colors; we just need to wear them strategically. I agree with that, but I don’t find myself buying items in colors that don’t look good on me.
First attempt with Very Peri…
When I ordered this cardigan, I had no idea periwinkle would be the styling prompt for January! What a happy accident! I wasn’t entirely sure how I would wear the cardigan, but that’s never stopped me. There is a wee bit of rust in the embroidery on the sleeves. My first thought was to wear it with this skirt. It did not spark joy (too many Christmas cookies…nuff said). Next, I started pulling out all kinds of things to see what would spark that joy of knowing you’ve hit upon a winner. Nothing in my big closet said, “Pick me, pick me!” I pondered a bit, looking at the colors and wondering what I could do. Still nothing. I had such high hopes for this prompt.
Finally…
Next, I thought I’d try a dress rather than a skirt. This cardigan was too long for most pants but too short for leggings so those were out of the picture. I went to the closet where I stash keep my April Cornell clothing and hanging pants. I knew I’d bought a periwinkle knit dress a couple of years ago. I was going to settle for that. The colors, however, were all wrong. Both are a shade of periwinkle just not compatible (if that makes sense). But, then, I remembered I also had the same dress in a shade of grey. I grabbed that, went back to my bedroom, and put on both. Le Sigh… That was not a good look at all. The dress has a higher waistline. The cardigan has none. Maybe a belt would work, when what to my wandering eyes…whoops…I got carried away! I decided to tie the sweater instead! I know, I know, nothing magical or earth shattering there. But, it was exactly what this look needed. Remembering my early Job’s Daughters’ training (maybe another blog post), I tied a square knot (right over left, left over right), and my outfit was born! I tied the sweater at my natural waistline which is much higher than most people. And, in doing that, I created a nice hourglass silhouette.
The Lewk
I love the embroidered detail on the bodice of this dress (similar in French periwinkle) so I went with a delicate necklace. And, check out the crocheted detailing on the hem of this dress! It also has pockets! I paired a sterling silver bamboo cuff with a silver block pattern toggle bracelet (both purchased from eBay years ago) and a pair of matte silver hoops from Premier Designs. The ring is David Yurman (similar) which has tarnished quite badly, but I like this look because the details show much better. The booties (similar) are a taupe which reads a little more grey than brown. The cardigan is 100% cotton, really soft, and on sale. The button closure is hidden and consists of crocheted loops. The inside is just as pretty as the outside. I might even wear it inside out some day.
And now the good stuff!
Here are links to all of the lovely ladies in the Ageless Style collaboration. Please do visit them on their various media. Also, please join the party and click on the link below to share how you’ve styled the Pantone Color of the Year, Very Peri or any other color! No judgement here!
Amy ~ Amy’s Creative Pursuits
Blog | Instagram | Pinterest | Facebook |
Bo ~ Bo’s Bodacious Blog
Blog / Instagram /Pinterest / Bloglovin’
Carrie ~ A Simple Lovely Life
Blog | Instagram | Pinterest | Facebook |
Joanna ~ My Slice of Life
Jodie ~ Jodie’s Touch of Style
Leslie ~ Once Upon a Time and Happily Ever After
Blog | Instagram | Pinterest | Facebook |
Marsha~ Marsha in the Middle
Mireille ~ Chez Mireille Fashion Travel Mom
Blog | Instagram | Pinterest | Facebook |
Robin ~ Hello I am 50ish
Blog / Instagram / Pinterest / Facebook
Wrap it up, Marsha!
Goodness! This has been a long post. When I start writing a blog post, I’m never sure exactly where I’m going to end up! I had completely forgotten about our encounter with Herb Eiseman. This post let me relive those moments with a wonderful and charming gentleman who was so very proud of his wife. Have you ever had a chance encounter with someone and later found out they were rather important in one field or another? What do you think of the Color of the Year, Very Peri? Will you make an effort to include this color in your wardrobe or home? Please leave me a comment, and let’s have a conversation! Let me know what you think of my interpretation of Very Peri! Thanks, as always, for visiting my blog! I appreciate you more than you know!
Where I frequently link up:
Linking up with Nancy’s Fashion Style, My Bijou LIfe, Fine-Whatever, Is This Mutton, Shelbee on the Edge, Chez Mireile, The Grey Brunette, and Away from the Blue. Please check out these blogs if you haven’t already done so!
Hi Marsha and what a great post! First of all, got to confess that I don’t like the colour of the year as I’m a yellow, orange, brown person and that particular blue would be too pale for me. It looks lovely on you though especially with the grey. But what an amazing story you’ve told us! I mean meeting the person who is married to the woman who actually develops the colours – wow! And such a nice man who was also quite a guy. Btw, I adore trains and have travelled a lot on them in Europe and, and, the States. Well, I exaggerate! But in 1999 we travelled from Palm Springs to Philadelphia by train taking five days in all to do it as we stopped off in Charleston and Washington. Such a great way to travel and meet people. And you see so much of the country, which you would miss if you just took a plane.
We have become true train converts! We hope to travel back to the UK and ride the rails from top to bottom as well as onto the continent. Well, we’d like to…we shall have to wait to see what this virus has up next for us, right? Oh, Charleston is such a lovely town. My oldest granddaughter was born there. And, Washington is amazing…so much to see and do. Our first trip was about 10 days, I think. We made a loop from Chicago to Seattle to Los Angeles to New Orleans and back to Chicago. And, the conversations were amazing. We met two couples from the UK, one from Australia, and countless others from around the States.
The funny thing about Herb was how understated he was. He actually was more proud of what his wife was doing. He mentioned she was an author, but he didn’t say anything about Pantone. I don’t know if that was just his way or if he truly didn’t understand the importance. I think, given his demeanor, it was just his way.
And, thanks so much for the compliments. I have noticed, since going grey, my colors have also changed. I don’t know if my coloring has also changed, but what used to look good now drains me of color! Always a change, right?
Thanks so much for coming by!
I guess you just never know who you’ll rub elbows with, huh? That’s so cool that you and Nigel had that chance encounter and met Herb.
I hardly pay attention to the Pantone colors so I’m happy to check out how all you lovely ladies are wearing periwinkle. Looks like you did a great job, Marsha!
xo,
Kellyann
Thanks so much, Kellyann! I think it pays to be kind to everyone and just sit and listen.
I’m not one for the Pantone colors other than to say, “Hmmm.” I like to look at inspiration boards on Pinterest, but that’s about the extent!
Thanks for coming by!
How neat! I don’t think I have ever met anyone famous or anyone that knew anyone famous. I really like periwinkle but was surprised that it is a color I don’t have much of in my wardrobe (nor could I find it in new clothes to order either; I don’t think it’s really taken off as color of the year yet). I am always drawn to shades of blue and green anyway.
I don’t really have many things in the blue family either. I think that’s because I once had a closet full of teal! I made an effort to buy other colors that worked for me. I wonder just how much impact these colors of the year have anyway.
What a cool story about meeting Herb! So crazy how it connects to this theme link up. I love how you styled this pretty top with your skirt. It shows off your shape nicely!
https://www.kathrineeldridge.com
I had totally forgotten about our conversation with Herb. It took me quite a while to find the information about him and his wife. Interestingly, she has a wikipedia page, but he doesn’t. Thanks for the compliments. I don’t usually think to knot a sweater over a dress, but it came out quite right!
Thanks for coming by!
Oh my goodness, I love this boho outfit! That cardigan and skirt are amazing.
Thanks, Amy! It’s actually a dress but has the effect of a skirt, doesn’t it?
I love how your outfit turned out. The hem on dress is really pretty and I am a sucker for grey! Love your story: the only famous person I met was an orca whale: Free Willy used to be in a attraction park in Mexico City when I lived there (it was actually rescued from there) and I was one of the person in the audience that got chose to be “kissed” by it!
http://www.chezmireillefashiontravelmom.com
I love grey, too! It’s such a calming color to me. I can just see you now getting a kiss from a whale!
Thanks for coming by!
How cool is that? Herb sounds like quite the interesting person indeed! I don’t have any stories of my own. Introverts introverting and all that. My husband has a number of stories having been an airliner pilot, based in California for part of his career. This is another lovely outfit, Marsha! Despite your struggles, you nailed it. I love periwinkle. I also had a periwinkle bedroom – back in Las Vegas.
Michelle
https://mybijoulifeonline.com
I have discovered I’m an extroverted introvert. I’m ok with conversations; I just don’t really like to start them. But, on a train, you either look at the table or talk to the person across from you! I think Herb started talking to Nigel first. But, he really was just the best man…he was oh so proud of his wife and her accomplishments. I had no idea who either of them were until I googled them!
I really do like the way this outfit came out. But, there was a bit where I just cringed looking into the mirror!
Thanks for coming by!
I love the story and it makes me want to take a train trip now. You can meet the best people, and who knew you would meet the man married to one of those that create the color of the year. In fact, we always laugh about WHO really chooses these colors. And you know the answer to that.
Just love how you put the outfit together Marsha!
OXOX
Jodie
http://www.jtouchofstyle.com
Oh, Jodie, you absolutely need to take a train trip! You could go from Flagstaff to San Antonio, I think. I can’t wait to take another trip. Let me know if you want more details! We had amazing conversations with all kinds of people from around the world on our trips. And, the scenery! Oh, it is just amazing!
I was beginning to despair of coming up with something for this challenge until I happened upon this combination! Thanks so much!
What a facinating story!!!! Thank you for sharing. You know there are many things I am ready to return to after COVID, but one of the main things is being open to strangers. Smiling at people and randomly connecting, because you just never know who you are going to meet. I love that this color speaks of “peace and tranquility”, we all need that, and I love the semi-boho style you’ve created that really gives me that calming vibe. Love how you knotted the shirt over the dress, super cute!
bosbodaciousblog.blogspot.ca
Bo, you are so right. Smiling over the top of my mask and through my glasses…I’m not sure if people think I’m smiling or glaring! I keep hoping for an end to this.
I am so very glad we had this prompt because it made me remember that wonderful few hours spent with such an extraordinary man. And, then to see his wife was so heavily involved in the choice of Very Peri. Thanks so much for the compliments! I do appreciate them!
What a beautiful look. Almost ethereal. I love the way the pieces complement each other. Periwinkle is such a hard color to pinpoint…at least for me. Is it blue? Purple? Somewhere in between? When I think I recognize it when I see it but wind up second guessing myself. After I published my post, I decided my top was baby blue!! Ha!
I love riding the train. Would gladly ride the train on all my trips. I like see the landscape slide by. I like being able to kind of stretch out, walk, move about with more freedom than on a plane and definitely more than traveling by car. Hope to do more of it once my Prince C. retires.
I really think my sweater ended up being more blue than periwinkle. The funny thing is the dress I pulled out first was probably definitely (get that…probably definitely) periwinkle. But, I was so set on using this cardigan!
Oh, if we ever get on a train again, maybe we’ll have to head to your part of the world! We loved going to San Antonio on the train. But, I think my favorite was to the Grand Canyon!
Oh wow, you look great! I really like the color on you 🙂
Lots of Love,
Krissi of the marquise diamond
https://www.themarquisediamond.de/
Thank you so much! That is really sweet of you to say! I love reading your blog and trying to figure out the words…thanks for the English translation, though!
The cardigan is a beautiful piece. The print and the embroidery details are cute. Love how you paired it with the dress.
xoxo
Lovely
http://www.mynameislovely.com
I knew it would be pretty because I’ve bought a couple of other knit things. I wasn’t sure it was going to work and then, boom! The outfit was born!
Thanks for coming by!
Your very peri outfit looks wonderful. It’s a color that is very flattering on you. (I also like your porch rug and decor!)
Carol
http://www.scribblingboomer.com
Thank you! It’s been a bit of a learning curve when I went grey! I’ve found many colors that used to work with my coloring no longer did! Oh, thank you about the porch! I love to decorate it for the seasons!
Thanks so much for coming by!